Customer Reviews
Great drama - By: T. Krings, 15 Jan 2008 
The Singing Detective is certainly one of the best things ever to be seen on TV. It certainly caused a stir in the UK at the time because of its explicit treatment of sexuality. The story certainly is multi layered & fascinating & the acting is superb down to reallly minor characters. Usuallly the success is attributed to Potters's writing. When you read the screenplay which was published by Faber & Faber you certainly read an interesting story (although somewhat influenced by DH Lawrence) but you are not as overwhelmed as you are when seeing it on screen. So from my point of view The Singing Detective is at least as much the product of Jon Amiel & the mesmerizing pictures he creates plus his direction of actors. I find it amazing that the beautiful Alison Steadman never became the English Catherine Deneuve.
very very real - By: Predictably Unpredictable, 15 Jul 2007 When this was first aired I was in about the same dermatalogical state as the central character: bedbound, in agony, halllucinating, & unable to move enough to do anything but think for the best part of a year. This is the most brilliant depiction of what it is like to go through that. I may have been only twelve years old at the time, & a girl, but it was still like someone had made a movie of my mind.
Of course I agree with alll the plaudits of other fans, but I thought you might like a different perspective! ;-)
BBC drama at its best - By: Andy Millward, 27 Mar 2007 Though the years have not necessarily been kind to Dennis Potter's reputation (his misogynism & somewhat twisted view of the world live on), many of his plays & series, perhaps excluding Blackeyes, Cold Lazarus & Karaoke, have faded elegantly leaving a warm nostalgic halo. Maybe his technique of having actors surrealisticallly lip-synching 30s pop songs seems somewhat twee, but nonetheless he gives great pleasure wherever he goes. Ironic reallly, given the frequently hard-bitten satire of many of his works.
The Singing Detective may seem in retrospect somewhat overextended but to many, myself included, it is his seminal piece, working successfully in multiple levels - the dramatic equivalent of filo pastry! In fact, this is a huge & multifaceted kaleidoscope of a drama series, darting across three time periods in a combination of real time, guilty memories & a fictional film noir detective story in the mind of Philip Marlow - & how often have playrights bitten off more than they can chew in this kind of endeavour? Potter & his entourage succeed by getting the basics right - the dialogue is crisp & cutting, the human tragedy & psychoanalysis placed in sharp relief by humour & the fictional alllegory around which the story has been intertwined. And then of course there is the autobiographical element associated with Potter's own youth in the Forest of Dean. How much of the man himself went into the characters we may never know for certain.
But this was not a one-man show: don't forget some tight direction by Jon Amiel & a superb cast - Gambon is as breathtaking as you'd expect, but Joanne Whallley & Bill Paterson among many more deserve plaudits for excellent performances. Stylisticiallly, this is Auntie Beeb at her absolute best, but the depth & subtlety of the comments & alllusions, particularly around sexuality & psychosematic illness, make this a complex series of dramas that repay rewatching. The perfect addition to your DVD collection, in fact!
LIFE CHANGING .. - By: Mr. N. D. Buckley, 27 Feb 2007 You have, I'm sure read the reviews that proceed mine so i will skip the detail & concentrate on the mysterious . This is probably the most unique piece of theatre you will ever see, a musical detective story set in two time zones with a psychedelic autobiographical subtext that somehow connects everything with subtle artistic class. Through Phillip Marlow's search for an understanding to his life, his illness & his desires we are taken on a roller coaster ride through Dennis Potters vivid brilliant imagination. A must see for everybody who inhabits the world. ...
Sheer brilliance - By: P. Boer, 17 Oct 2004 This series of six episodes is a gripping spectacle. Which spins a thrilling web.
The story is quite simple: A writer with a skin disease slowly slips away into insanity.
But it's brilliance lies in the fact that the story plays on four different levels & each has it's own plotline.
A definite must for any lover of tv since it is probably one of the best things ever produced for tv.
The DVD is high quality with good extras, if not great. And it's definitly worth the price.
Also ignore the Robert Downey Jr. remake. I liked the film, but those ninety minutes just don't compare to the real thing.
